Absorbent composites having a superabsorbent material contained in discrete pockets in a substrate are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,601,542, issued Feb. 11, 1997 to Melius et al. A plurality of pockets having spaces between them are formed in a substrate which can be a cloth-like woven or nonwoven web, a closed or open-celled foam, a perforated film, an elastic material, or a fibrous web. A superabsorbent material is loaded into the pockets. When the composite becomes wet, the superabsorbent expands, and the adjacent pockets are urged toward each other.
This expansion of pockets may cause the entire absorbent composite to expand, in a lateral and/or longitudinal direction. Thus, the dimensions of the absorbent composite (and, often, the entire absorbent article) may increase laterally and/or longitudinally when the article becomes wet. An absorbent article which fits snugly or tightly when dry, may fit loosely and not as well when wet. There is a need or desire for an absorbent article containing discrete superabsorbent entities, whose lateral and longitudinal dimensions do not significantly change when the article becomes wet.